It's a movement to enhance schools' existing meal programs by introducing fresh, nutritious, local and sustainable food to children.

Farm-to-School programs connect schools with local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, providing health and nutrition education opportunities, and supporting local small farmers.

Farm-to-School projects are as different as the communities in which they exist. A major factor that influences how they operate is the local agriculture found in the region. The seasonality of crops is much different in California, where crops grow year-round, than in Maine, which has a short growing season.

Farm-to-School programs are popping up all over the U.S.; currently there are 1,117 programs in 33 states involving 10,943 schools in 768 districts.

Ten Reasons Why Farm-to-School is an Excellent Idea

How to Go about Starting a Farm-to-School Program in Your District

The initial proposal to organize a Farm-to-School program can come from parents, farmers, schools, and community groups. School food service staff are key in design and implementation. BOE presidents, superintendents, principals, students, and teachers can also be influential in setting up a project. Some programs are organized "from the bottom up," initiated by parents or farmers, while others have come "from the top down," initiated by the school board or administration.

Either way is fine, as long as the effort is inclusive of all parties. Including as many players as possible will improve your chance of success by incorporating the ideas and concerns of all involved. Farm-to-School programs can involve anywhere from one to twelve farm products, and operate year-round or for two months. There is no one blueprint; successful projects are "custom-made" for each community.

Visit www.farmtoschool.org, the ultimate Farm-to-School resource that promotes Farm-to-School on a national level.

The National Farm-to-School Program is a collaborative program of the Center for Food and Justice (CFJ) and the Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC).

These organizations have spearheaded the development of the Farm-to-School movement across the country, successfully assisting organizations in starting up and sustaining Farm-to-School efforts, fundraising, and providing informational resources, education and training for Farm-to-School.

To read more: A Growing Movement: A Decade of Farm to School in California (PDF)

Excellent Resources

Cornell Farm To School's primary objective is that schools, colleges and universities will increase the use of foods produced on New York farms in their food service. A secondary objective is that students will have an increased understanding of local food and agriculture systems. Their "Farm to School Toolkit for the Northeast" lays out, in a very clear and comprehensive way, the routes toward creating a viable Farm-to-School project.

Vermont Food Education Every Day (VT FEED) is a community-based approach to school food system change in a rural state through a collaboration of three Vermont non-profits: Food Works at Two Rivers, Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, and Shelburne Farms.

Wisconsin Homegrown Lunch is a project that, in collaboration with school educators, school food service staff, and local food producers, hopes to establish a thriving Farm-to-School model for the upper Midwest.

Community Alliance with Family Farmers is a farmer-run organization. CAFF's program is focused on creating distribution networks that can be used by school nutrition directors to purchase their produce from local farms easily and without increasing their standard food budget, making the purchase of more fruits and vegetables a sustainable economic choice for financially strapped school districts.